Staying hydrated in summer heat

The summer heat has arrived. Susan Mills-Gray, nutrition/health
education specialist with University of Missouri Extension, says that
staying hydrated is crucial to staying healthy when the intense Midwest
heat and humidity arrives.

“We don’t think about water being a critical nutrient for health,
but it is. Dehydration can make you fatigued and hinder work and sports
performance,” she says.

Eight 8-ounce glasses of water a day is adequate for most people.
Water isn’t the only fluid that will meet the daily water requirements.
Almost any nonalcoholic fluid will do: juice, coffee or tea (decaffeinated
is best), lemonade, soups and milk. Many fruits and vegetables also
add fluid to the diet. Watermelon is 90 percent water, so it ranks highest
on the list. Other excellent choices include: oranges, grapefruit, cantaloupe,
honeydew, celery, cucumbers, tomatoes, green peppers and romaine lettuce.
Conversely, alcohol is a dehydrator. Try to limit alcohol intake, but
if you are going to raise a glass, aim for at least a one-to-one ratio
with water.

The simplest way to check hydration is to check the color of your
urine. If urine is dark (like the color of apple juice), you need to
drink more fluids. A properly hydrated person’s urine should be pale
yellow (resembling weak lemonade). To be safe, always drink a little
more than what is required to quench your thirst. Young children and
older adults often have poor functioning thirst mechanisms, so be mindful
of these two groups during intense waves of heat.

Many times we think that sweating leads to dehydration, but sweating
is actually a good sign. It’s the body’s way of getting rid of heat
while maintaining a constant internal temperature of about 98.6 degrees
F. During hard work, your muscles generate 20 times more heat than when
you are at rest, which causes sweating. As sweat evaporates, it cools
the skin. This then cools the blood, which cools the inner body.